Free citywide WiFi in Mountain View — Today, Google launched a WiFi network in our hometown of Mountain View. Radios hanging on lampposts throughout the city are now broadcasting a "GoogleWiFi" wireless (802.11b/g) signal that brings wireless Internet access to the city's residents, businesses, and visitors.

Google launches WiFi Network in Mountain View — Less than a year after the search engine giant said that it would unwire its hometown of Mountain View, California, GoogleFi is now open for packets. — The Mountain View network that cost nearly a million dollars to build went live at 9pm PST today.

The Great Unread — Once upon a time there was an island named Blogosphere, and at the very center of that island stood a great castle built of stone, and spreading out from that castle for miles in every direction was a vast settlement of peasants who lived in shacks fashioned of tin and cardboard and straw.

Is Nick Carr the new Robin Hood, or just an A**hole? — Nick goes on a rant about how unfair the blogging world is. It's an easy way to get links (hey, he's getting mine for the first time), but his post is complete nonsense and shows that he has no idea what blogging is all about.

AOL Acquires GameDaily From Gigex — AOL Games Expands Audience by Acquiring Some of the Best Gaming Content on the Web. Check out the full press release on this exciting news! — Dulles, VA - August 16, 2006 - AOL LLC announced today that it has acquired GameDaily ( http://www.gamedaily.com ) …

AOL's Ralph Rivera Explains the GameDaily Purchase — If you haven't heard the news, first go read the press release. Then come on back and check out this informative Q&A session with Ralph Rivera, General Manager of AOL Games. The acquisition presents a wonderful opportunity for both GameDaily and AOL.

Google snaps up photo-technologist Neven Vision — According to Google's blog, the search giant has bought Neven Vision, a small Santa Monica-based company that specializes in object and facial recognition technology. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Adrian Graham …

With shovels, AOL looks for retribution — Internet company to dig for gold at home of spammer's parents — WASHINGTON (AP) — AOL is preparing to dig for buried gold and platinum on property in Massachusetts owned by the parents of a man it sued for sending millions of unwanted spam e-mails to its customers.

CBS to air primetime shows online —Text+NEW YORK (Reuters) - CBS Corp. on Tuesday said it plans to air prime time television programs, including its top-rated CSI series and "Survivor" show, on the Internet for free. — The shows will include "limited commercial interruption" …

GameFest: Xbox 360 Camera To Ship With Free Game — As part of Microsoft's Gamefest this week in Seattle, Gamasutra has obtained exclusive new details on the launch of the Xbox Live Vision video camera accessory for the Xbox 360, including confirmation of a gesture-based game that is set to be included for free with the hardware.

A Food Web Site, Spiced With Attitude — HIPNESS is rarely a prime ingredient in the most popular Web sites devoted to food and drink. Chow.com, a new food Web site that begins its rollout next week, hopes to inject that sensibility into its smorgasbord of recipes, restaurant reviews …

Engadget's Cleaning Out Our Closet Contest — Well, we spent the better part of this past weekend tidying up around the old HQ and found a TON of old gadgets buried under a pile of back issues of Omni. We've gotten a lot of stuff sent to us over the years, not all of which we have time to check out …

We're open! Instant access now available — I'm happy to tell you that we've just removed the wait to receive a Google Analytics account. Now anyone with a website can instantly create one for free by simply by visiting google.com/analytics or by clicking on the "Analytics" tab within AdWords.

Changing Times — Ian Livingstone's career history, which now spans more than three decades, has been well documented. From Games Workshop and Fighting Fantasy to Eidos, Tomb Raider, a BAFTA and an OBE, he's not just an industry veteran, but something of an industry legend.